What are the responsibilities and job description for the Instrumentation and Test Engineer Electronics Engineer position at National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)?
Summary
NIST is seeking an Electronics Engineer to advance spectrum science and strengthen the reliability of next-generation wireless communications through innovative RF measurement systems, test automation, and electromagnetic compatibility research. This notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which NIST has a severe shortage of candidates.
Duties
In this role, you will: - Advance applied research in systems testing and spectrum science by taking ownership of the design, development, deployment, and maintenance of purpose-built RF spectrum sensors and interference susceptibility testbeds. Utilizing a systems-level approach. - Enable novel methods for in-situ RF emission measurements in remote and access-controlled outdoor locations, while also contributing to experiments in state-of-the-art laboratories to evaluate RF systems and 5G telecommunications infrastructure. - Support complex, high-impact field and laboratory studies which require interfacing, configuring, and troubleshooting commercial advanced communication systems, metrology-grade test equipment, and cabled or wireless components. - Develop signal processing and automation software, participate in data generation and analysis for measurement campaigns, and contribute to technical reports, sponsor briefings, and peer-reviewed scientific publications. This position requires occasional travel for field testing, training, conferences, and stakeholder engagements
Qualifications
BASIC REQUIREMENTS: A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET ; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. OR B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences nd techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: 1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any state, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. 2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. 3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A. 4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.) AND In addition to the basic qualifications above, applicants must possess one of the following to qualify: A. One year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level (ZP-II at NIST). Specialized experience is defined as experience performing RF measurements and test automation; acquiring, analyzing, and managing engineering data; and developing software applications using Python or similar programming languages. OR B. Master's or equivalent graduate degree OR C. Combination of education and experience Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. If requesting reconsideration of your qualification determination, please refer to the following site: Applicant Reconsideration
NIST is seeking an Electronics Engineer to advance spectrum science and strengthen the reliability of next-generation wireless communications through innovative RF measurement systems, test automation, and electromagnetic compatibility research. This notice is issued under direct-hire authority to recruit new talent to occupations for which NIST has a severe shortage of candidates.
Duties
In this role, you will: - Advance applied research in systems testing and spectrum science by taking ownership of the design, development, deployment, and maintenance of purpose-built RF spectrum sensors and interference susceptibility testbeds. Utilizing a systems-level approach. - Enable novel methods for in-situ RF emission measurements in remote and access-controlled outdoor locations, while also contributing to experiments in state-of-the-art laboratories to evaluate RF systems and 5G telecommunications infrastructure. - Support complex, high-impact field and laboratory studies which require interfacing, configuring, and troubleshooting commercial advanced communication systems, metrology-grade test equipment, and cabled or wireless components. - Develop signal processing and automation software, participate in data generation and analysis for measurement campaigns, and contribute to technical reports, sponsor briefings, and peer-reviewed scientific publications. This position requires occasional travel for field testing, training, conferences, and stakeholder engagements
Qualifications
BASIC REQUIREMENTS: A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET ; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. OR B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences nd techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following: 1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any state, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions. 2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. 3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A. 4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all-inclusive.) AND In addition to the basic qualifications above, applicants must possess one of the following to qualify: A. One year (52 weeks) of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level (ZP-II at NIST). Specialized experience is defined as experience performing RF measurements and test automation; acquiring, analyzing, and managing engineering data; and developing software applications using Python or similar programming languages. OR B. Master's or equivalent graduate degree OR C. Combination of education and experience Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The qualification requirements in this vacancy announcement are based on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards Handbook. If requesting reconsideration of your qualification determination, please refer to the following site: Applicant Reconsideration